The idea of being an entrepreneur is built into the American psyche. From a young age, we’re taught that in the U.S. you can do anything if you put your mind to it, including owning your own business. The truth is, being a successful entrepreneur isn’t easy. It takes an extraordinary amount of time, energy and dedication. You have to sacrifice just about everything to make your business your focus.

Entrepreneurship isn’t for everyone. Throughout history, many of the most successful entrepreneurs have shown common characteristics and personality traits. If you have the traits below you just might be a natural entrepreneur.

Entrepreneurs Aren’t Afraid of Failure . . . They Learn From It

No burgeoning entrepreneur is going to make all the right moves right off the bat. Being an entrepreneur means you’re going to have to overcome failure and learn from your mistakes.

Take Danny DeMichele, for example. This investor and internet marketing entrepreneur created one of the first nutrition websites nearly two decades ago. He sold the website to a big established conglomerate in exchange for stock. He quickly learned about diversification when the company that bought his website went bankrupt. Instead of letting the experience kill his entrepreneurial spirit he took it in stride and took the knowledge with him to his next venture. Danny has gone on to start other successful businesses, including eVisibility, which was acquired in 2010.

Entrepreneurs Ooze Charisma

The old saying you can attract more flies with honey than vinegar should stand out in the mind of every entrepreneur. Some of the world’s most successful entrepreneurs are extremely charismatic people. And those that aren’t naturally engaging learn ways to become more charismatic.

People are drawn to charismatic individuals. They want to be around them, befriend them and do business with them. Entrepreneurship requires a lot of networking. The more you can win people over the easier it is to be successful. A prime example of this is President Barak Obama. He came from extremely humble beginnings, but was able to become not only the leader of the free world but the United States’ first black president at the relatively young age of 47. Many people have noted that his ability to charm just about anyone has definitely helped him professionally.

They Are Super Resilient

Resilience is defined as the ability to recover quickly when things don’t go as expected. In order to overcome adversity as an entrepreneur and turn failure into a learning opportunity, you have to be resilient.

No matter how many projections are made, entrepreneurs are guaranteed to come across many hurdles and setbacks. It isn’t a matter of if, it’s a matter of when. It takes a fair amount of resilience to bounce back each time, and hopefully walk away better off in the long run.

They Are Adaptable

This personality trait is very closely related to being resilient. Successful entrepreneurs know how to pivot when they need to in order to make an idea or business work. They’re able to adapt to the situation whether it’s a high-profile networking event, grand opening of a storefront or cutting costs to make payroll during the off-season. Even the most well thought out plans have to be adjusted here and there, and adaptable people are able to make it work.

They Have an Inquisitive Mind

Many entrepreneurs are problem solvers. They see a market segment with a need and they figure out a way to fulfill it. Their inquisitive minds troubleshoot the problem until they find the best solution.

Bill Gates is such a voracious thinker that he didn’t stop with a game-changing computer software company. He set his sights even higher with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Now he and his wife work to solve some of the world’s most pressing societal problems. Figuring out how to boost the performance of U.S. schools, wipe out aids and bring clean drinking water into arid environments takes a lot of creative thinking.

They Aren’t Afraid to Take Risks

Striking out on your own or developing a product from nothing is far from a sure thing. Entrepreneurship involves a lot of risk. Successful entrepreneurs aren’t afraid to bet on themselves and go big. They fully understand the risks, but are able to mitigate and manage it.

Barbara Corcoran of Shark Tank once pointed out in an interview that risk isn’t just financial. Putting all of your energy and focus into one thing is also a big risk that entrepreneurs have to take.

They’re Passionate

Businesses are called a labor of love for a reason. In order to make it through the 60+ hour weeks, the uncertainty, the periods without a paycheck and the stress you have to be passionate about what you’re doing. Passion is what fuels the drive and determination of entrepreneurs who are able to create a business out of nothing more than a concept.

The new
GE Experts Network is inviting seasoned entrepreneurs and small business
owners to come on board and contribute small business advice to our community of
aspiring entrepreneurs. If you have an effective way of generating sales or you
know how to use social networking to connect with your customers,
join us in
providing wider entrepreneurial content that would benefit small business owners
worldwide.

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